eager
pronunciation
How to pronounce eager in British English:
UK [ˈiːɡə(r)]
How to pronounce eager in American English:
US [ˈiːɡər]
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- Noun:
- a high wave (often dangerous) caused by tidal flow (as by colliding tidal currents or in a narrow estuary)
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- Adjective:
- having or showing keen interest or intense desire or impatient expectancy
- marked by active interest and enthusiasm
Word Origin
- eager
- eager: [13] As its close etymological connection with vinegar and acid might suggest, the underlying sense of eager is ‘sharp’. It comes ultimately from the Indo-European base *ak- ‘sharp, pointed’, amongst whose other English descendants are acne, edge, and oxygen. It was the source of Latin ācer ‘keen, sharp’, which was used in relation both to sight, hearing, etc, and to temperamental qualities – hence ‘ardent, zealous’.The Latin adjective (from which English also gets acid and acrid) became *acrum in post-classical times, and from this came Old French aigre (source of the -egar of vinegar), which passed into English via Anglo- Norman egre. English retained the literal senses ‘pungent, sour’ and ‘sharp-edged’ until the early 19th century.=> acid, acne, acrid, acute, edge, oxygen
- eager (adj.)
- late 13c., "strenuous, ardent, fierce, angry," from Old French aigre "sour, acid; harsh, bitter, rough; eager greedy; lively, active, forceful," from Latin acrem (nominative acer) "keen, sharp, pointed, piercing; acute, ardent, zealous" (see acrid). Meaning "full of keen desire" (early 14c.) seems to be peculiar to English. The English word kept a secondary meaning of "pungent, sharp-edged" till 19c. (as in Shakespeare's "The bitter clamour of two eager tongues," in "Richard II"). Related: Eagerly; eagerness. Eager beaver "glutton for work" [OED] is from 1943, U.S. armed forces slang.
Antonym
Example
- 1. Mr gou seems eager to prove them wrong .
- 2. He seemed less eager to hear from me than before .
- 3. She says the most eager applicants quickly make her a list .
- 4. Even now , over a year after leaving the fed , his comments have found an eager audience .
- 5. They are eager to continue celebrating his life , music , talent and legacy .